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B.C. government remains quiet on removal of ALR land in the Peace Valley

By
Adam Steinberg and Dwight Ford

Energeticcity

April 20, 2015

Sierra Club B.C. and the Peace Valley Environment Association issued a news release at the end of last week raising concerns that on April 8, the Provincial Cabinet quietly issued Order 148, removing unspecified lands from the ALR – allegedly to facilitate dam construction.

Among the many stories associated with the construction of the Site C dam is one that goes to the removal of Peace Valley lands from the Agricultural Land Reserve.

Sierra Club B.C. and the Peace Valley Environment Association issued a news release at the end of last week raising concerns that on April 8, the Provincial Cabinet quietly issued Order 148, removing unspecified lands from the ALR – allegedly to facilitate dam construction.

They argued the government has dealt a blow to the ability of B.C. families, especially those in the north, to afford B.C. grown fruits and vegetables by moving forward with the decision behind closed doors and without democratic debate.

Sierra Club Peace Valley campaigner Ana Simeon said, “The secrecy of it is mind-blowing” and confirmed Sierra Club attempts to obtain the maps referred to in the order had not been met with any response.

“We’ve made many attempts to get in touch with the Order in Council office, and the Deputy Minister’s office and the Minister of Agriculture and we have not been able to obtain these maps,” says Simeon. “So for all we know, it could be other lands in addition to the Site C land.” Simeon adds, “It’s just one insult after another and it’s heartbreaking.”

“Where is the rationale for destroying farmland that has taken thousands of years to create?”

Andrea Morrison of the PVEA adds that, “In an unprecedented move, even the Chair of the joint Review Panel on Site C, Harry Swain, publicly disclosed his concerns that the cost of the dam and the energy demand forecasts are not solid, and need to be independently and thoroughly reviewed before the province continues with a series of reckless decisions concerning this dam.”

Several project critics have cited the need for a B.C. Utilities Commission review of the project, and it remains to be seen if the courts will side with them in legal challenges launched today in B.C. Supreme Court and scheduled to continue in July in Federal Court.